Each year, an Oakland University student from the social work program who shows exemplary dedication to public service and volunteer activism will be awarded a scholarship from The Lauren Kathryn Roche Endowment for Scholarships in Social Work. This special award has been made possible by the loving family of Lauren K. Roche, CAS ’10 (posthumous), a dedicated and passionate student of social work who was devoted to serving and assisting others.
“Lauren was always willing to help others by giving her time, support and encouragement,” says Dan Roche, Lauren’s father. She was a loving daughter and sister and was blessed with a strong commitment to public service. Lauren was a member of the Phi Alpha Honor Society, the Oakland University Social Work Club and was a recent intern with the 52nd-53rd District Court Probation Department. The Lauren Kathryn Roche Endowment for Scholarships in Social Work will continue Lauren’s legacy and allow students with similar ideals to join their Oakland education with social service.
The OU social work program in the College of Arts and Sciences prepares students for a career in helping others and promoting social change. The program requires intense classroom study, as well as field education, which truly is the heart of social work. Those graduating from OU with a bachelor’s degree in social work possess the necessary skills to successfully enter their professional lives as counselors, case managers and advocates who work with children, families, the elderly, the mentally ill and the disabled.
One student will be selected annually by a committee of faculty members to receive a scholarship from The Lauren Kathryn Roche Endowment for Scholarships in Social Work. This student will display the same strong commitment to public service and helping others that Lauren so graciously exhibited.
By establishing the endowment, Dan and Amy Roche, SEHS ’05, hope that “students who receive this scholarship strive to be true to themselves as they follow their call to public service, while integrating the vast knowledge and experience of their professors and field supervisors. The values taught within the social work program provide a great starting point in developing character, integrity and respect for all people.”
Social workers step in when everyone else steps aside, and yet the vocation is not a financially rewarding pursuit. The Roche endowed scholarship will help the most dedicated students focus fully on their education and future professions and ultimately fulfill their call to public service.